


On a Winter Market

by SrebrnaFH



Series: Double Pride Double Trouble - series [4]
Category: Das doppelte Lottchen | Lottie and Lisa - Erich Kästner, Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
Genre: Accidents, Christmas fair, F/F, F/M, Meet Cute (?), One Shot, Snow, The Parent Trap AU, Vingettes, Winter Market, sequels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-11
Updated: 2020-06-11
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:13:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,777
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24663658
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SrebrnaFH/pseuds/SrebrnaFH
Summary: There is a Christmas Fair in Lambton, full of people, food, craftworks and singing.On that fair, a young man is very much annoyed with everything - the sweets, the crocheted animals, the hot chocolate and people in general.Until a girl steps out of the shop and slips on ice.(this is another oneshot story as a sequel to my Double Pride Double Trouble fanfic, will make no sense if you haven't read the main one)
Relationships: Elizabeth Bennet/Fitzwilliam Darcy, Georgiana Darcy/OC - Lucy Yang, OC - Mina Bennet/OC - Teddy Strickland
Series: Double Pride Double Trouble - series [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1273559
Comments: 6
Kudos: 20





	On a Winter Market

**Author's Note:**

> The rare reader who also reads my Sherlock stories will recognise the premise from my "Let it Snow".
> 
> In fact, the first version of the scene was written with Mina and Teddy. Then I decided Teddy had had enough heroics and gave the feat of bravery to young John Watson... But then I came back to DTDP and saw the same thing happening with... someone new.
> 
> So, here it is.
> 
> (this was posted before on meryton.com, I'm now catching up here to make the series the same)

This was the most noisy, annoying and crowded Christmas Fair he had ever had the misfortune to experience. And he _hated_ Christmas fairs, in general. He had probably had some kind of blackout when he agreed to come to this one. He had also, quite unfortunately, promised Auntie that he would meet her there - in an hour or so - and would have his shopping done by that time.

Well, he was quite done now.

Apart from the fact that he had not bought anything.

But he was very much _done_ with the Lambton County Fair, with their booths full of candy, their scene and their carol competition and basically everything, up to and including the entire stand filled with _biscuits_ , with their heavy chocolatey aroma wafting in the air, making him salivate like an out of control werewolf. Or just wolf. Whatever.

He couldn't really allow himself to add more calories to this week. Christmas feast at Auntie's house was going to be bad enough, with everyone cooing at how thin he was and how he should eat more and bulk up.

He had muscles, thank you very much. He ate reasonably, according to the regimen designed by his coach, he exercised as needed, he...

He really wanted a chocolate biscuit. And some hot tea with honey and raspberry jam and...

That was unfair. The ladies at the sweets stand had large thermos containers with tea, chocolate and hot cider.

U. N. F. A. I. R.

He turned sharply away and walked towards another booth, manned - staffed? - by two unfairly jolly looking women and heaped high with a large variety of blankets, rugs, bags, pillows and stuffed animals. He looked a slightly wonky dinosaur straight in his black, plastic eyes (which was a disquieting experience, since the dino seemed to be looking back at him) and picked up the little tortoise just next to the lizard, turning it in his hands, trying to work out how it was made.

"All crocheted, handmade locally," one of the women informed him. "Creator's tag is on each of them, so is the washing instruction label."

"Ah, I..."

"No worries, kiddo, you can have a closer look. There are other colours, too, on the other side. And we have this one here," she pointed to the ceiling of the booth. "He's just waiting for someone to fall in love with him."

Indeed, there was... a tortoise. A huge one. At least two feet across on the shell... And was it covered in flowers?

"Thank you, but no," he smiled wanly. "Wouldn't be able to carry it around with me."

"Ah, well," the woman smiled. "I'll have to tell Lizzy people are scared of big turtles," she added towards her companion, who nodded and giggled.

He stepped away and smiled at her apologetically. He didn't have much need for a stuffed animal, even though these were quite cute. Maybe if they had a crocheted horse, he could have bought one for Adrienne, but he couldn't find any on the display and he really couldn't find it in himself to ask the two women — what if they had one and it was ugly? Or too expensive? Or he just didn't like it? It was better not to ask than to risk feeling pressed to buy it just because they found one for him, right?

At this rate he would never be done with his shopping on time.

Maybe a box of biscuits for Mother... No. Definitely not going there.

He turned in place a few times, trying to find something intere...

Ah. Finally.

A nearly empty, snow-filled alley and an antique bookstore - still open, despite the hour - pulled him towards itself with a definitive force. He quickly checked the location of his phone and wallet and strolled slowly in the direction. Before he reached the display, however, a commotion exploded somewhere behind him and, at the sound of hooves, he turned.

Several things happened in a very short order. In the future, whenever he would think about, he would never be able to actually work out what happened when, but there was definitely...

...a girl stepping out of the sport shop just in front of him, skidding on an icy patch...

...a horse-drawn sleigh careening down the alley - with the horse galloping blindly...

...someone shouting...

...maybe him...?

...him catching the girl by her shoulder...

...both of them landing in a soft mound of snow, him on his back, slightly out of breath, the girl sprawled atop of him.

That must have been the last, but he wasn't perfectly sure, as in a moment she was standing above him. And then picking herself up.

_Wrong order?_

"Rose? Rose, are you alright? Rose? Please tell me you hadn't got yourself killed...!"

The girl who was trying to stand up coughed and thumped her chest a few times.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she croaked. "What was _that_?"

"That was Davison playing with fire," a boy next to them - where did _he_ come from? - answered testily. "He spooked the horses, fortunately not harming any."

"Idiot," one of the copies of the girl spat vehemently. "Ooh, I have snow in _places_."

It had to be something with his brain, he decided, but somehow it only applied to the girl. He had to be tired, if he was seeing double - but only girls. Interesting. Fortunately the other boy was one, unique. That meant that his brain was at least partially working fine. He squinted at the girl - who was now arguing with herself while dusting hers— the other one— argh.

He knuckled his eyes, trying to regain some control over what he was seeing.

"Twins," the other boy supplied helpfully. "You're not seeing twice, if that's what you're afraid of. Also, that was a frigging awesome move, dude."

"Teddy!" one of the girls turned towards the boy with a frown.

"Sorry, Starlight," he rolled his eyes at the scolding. "But when I'm not using the _other_ f-word, I need a replacement."

"I'm objecting to the use of ‘dude', Teddy," she informed him sweetly.

"I'm objecting to the f-word, however," a male voice interrupted them.

"Dad!" one of... anyway, both were now moving to the tall, greying man.

"Rose came out of the shop straight in front of that horse, sir," the boy - Teddy - explained. "And this... this one, here, pulled her back just in time."

"Oh," he found himself the object of scrutiny of a pair of icy blue eyes. "And you'd be...?"

"Rose!"

One of the ladies from the biscuit counter was marching towards them, another hot on her heels - wearing a baby carrier...?

"Oh, Rose, I saw it, but the gate... never mind, are you alright?"

"Yes, Mom, I'm fine," the girl underwent some patting and dusting off the snow and checking if she were fine - again. "Nothing happened, really. I only stepped out of the shop and my leg went out on this little patch of ice there and then he pulled me back and into the snowbank and..." she shrugged, half-smiling at him, as he was being been hauled out of the snow by the blue-eyed man - her father. "That's it."

"Oh, thank you for saving her," the mother of the twins - they were twins, 'Teddy' had said, OK, not problems with his eyes, just twins - turned to him with a wide smile. "And you are...?"

"Andrew," he explained, clapping his hands a few times to get rid of the snow and dusting off the shoulders of his jacket. "Andrew de Bourgh."

And then there was a group kind of stiffness, as all of them watched him with slight apprehension and it dawned on him.

_Shit. Lambton._

"I... We are incredibly sorry, as a family, and we dearly wish she had never married uncle Lewis - whom I had never met - and I'm not even related to her and..."

"Hey, hey," the girl - Rose? - patted his arm. "That's OK. _We are_. I mean, related to her."

"O-oh? You are? I mean, seriously, that's..." he bit his lip to shut himself up.

_Now, Andrew, you know better than to babble, right?_

"William Darcy," the man introduced himself. "This is Elizabeth, my wife, Georgiana, my sister and my daughters, Rose and Mina, and Teddy, Mina's..."

"Yes, Dad, _boyfriend_ ," the-other-girl - Mina - rolled her eyes. "You will have to learn to say it some day."

"Absolutely not," the man countered in what was obviously a longstanding argument.

"Anyway. Teddy Strickland," the boy reached out. "Thank you for saving Rose, Andrew."

_Darcys. What are the odds..._

"Come on, back to the stand," the short woman - Elizabeth? - ordered. "It's warmer there and we can have something to drink. You two probably need it the most, but Teddy and Mina deserve a celebratory chocolate after the winning the competition."

"Pairing up for it was the most reasonable thing they had ever done," Rose sighed. "At least there is no more angst whether the other one will be sad because they lost."

"Shut up, Rosie," Mina suggested kindly. "And yes, we got the first prize, because of my brave, brave boyfriend picking a truly challenging song."

"Because of your Mom being a really good teacher," Teddy countered.

"Because of you two being really good at singing," said mother corrected. "I was just there to make sure you _actually practised_."

"Mom!"

It was weird. They were weird. The whole dynamics between them and the way they bickered and...

"Come on, Andrew," Teddy patted his shoulder. "You're in for a treat."

He was, apparently. Or he would have been, if not for the fact that he was carefully avoiding exactly that stand for the previous hour or so.

"Teddy, you OK for one chocolate?"

"I will share mine with Mina," the boy sighed. "Whole cup is a bit too much for my 'one a day'."

"Come on, you certainly used up a lot of calories today," his girlfriend laughed and Andrew felt something like jealousy squeezing his insides.

"Yes, but it doesn't mean I can just let myself go. You wouldn't want the captain to be the roundest thing on the field, would you?"

"Teddy, you could eat half of this tray and you'd burn it all during the next game. But I'm not pressing you. Andrew? Anything? Chocolate, tea? A gingerbread Moomin?"

"No, thank you," he swallowed and smiled tensely. "I can't."

"We have sugar-free versions, too," she assured. "Experimenting with xylitol and stevia."

"Mom, leave him alone. If he says he can't, he can't."

Oh. Rose.

The girls were obviously enjoying the sweets (and Teddy had sipped some of the chocolate from Mina's cup), but he swallowed and shook his head, regretfully.

"It's not about the sugar, Mrs Darcy, it's about the whole thing. I have to pay attention or my horse will start protesting, and that's no good on an obstacle course."

Two pairs of bright eyes alighted on him.

"You jump?" Rose's focus was suddenly _fully_ on him and he almost took a wary step away.

"Well, yes. Why...?"

"She rides dressage," her sister provided, poking Rose's shoulder.

"So would she, if she ever made an effort to make any horse obey her," Rose poked back, never taking her eyes off him. "Hunter or jumper...?"

The conversations - and people buying, and eating and drinking - all around them could be happily ignored as they discussed their horses, competitions, judges, events and their hopes for the future in the sport.

"It's good to talk to someone who goes to these things, too," he sipped the unsweetened tea Rose's mother handed him at some point. "I mean, at my old school, nobody was even interested, and they thought I was kind of weird. Nice to meet at least one person who knows what I'm talking about. My dad used to ride, but--" he shrugged. "He doesn't really care for the events."

"It was the same for me, just me and Dad. Well, until Mina decided she wants to try - but all she does is ride them around and allows them to run free and do whatever they want. Dad laughs at her and says our horses love her so much because she never expects them to make any effort. And she is the lightest of the three of us, so they like her even _more_."

"She could probably do vaulting then," he remarked absently. "I mean, if she likes _riding_ itself and is so light..."

"Well, that would be up to Dad's decision," Rose rolled her eyes. "And Mina's, obviously, if she ever moves beyond just letting them prance around."

"Andre! I've been looking for you _everywhere_!"

_Uh-oh._

"Maura."

"William. What exactly are you doing with my nephew?"

"Expressing our thanks him for saving my daughter from a runaway horse. Well, and keeping him warm with some tea."

Auntie Maura _sniffed_. That derisive sniff was something of an art she cultivated. A special skill of hers. Communicating a lot in just a bare sound.

"Andre, can you please explain what William can possibly mean?"

He found it very hard to put the events of the afternoon into words, especially since Auntie Maura seemed to be... somewhat annoyed.

"He had pulled Rose away when she fell on the street," Mina provided from over her cup of chocolate. "Very heroic."

Aunt Maura looked from Rose... to Mina... to Rose again. Frowned.

Blinked.

Closed one eye.

"Twins," Andrew hurried up to explain, feeling a bit tired. "Rose, Mina. My aunt Maura," he made a gesture that was obviously nowhere near the requisite kind of introduction bow that would be normally required of him. "Rose has slipped on some ice, I managed to catch her. Not much to explain here."

"And you are fine?" she asked, her eyes scanning him up and down, as if she was able to see contusions through his thick coat.

"Yes, I was just a bit wet, but I'm fine now."

"Are you sure? Because we wouldn't want you to be sick and miss the next competition, you know. Last year you were..."

"Yes, Auntie. I'm good. Mrs Darcy made me some tea — no sugar and no, I'm not going to use any — and I've dried my gloves. Please..." he looked at her beseechingly. "I'm fine?"

"Very well. But I will be watching you, my dear. One pneumonia is one too many. You are a delicate boy..."

"Auntie!"

Because seriously, there was nothing worse than older generation representative saying you were "delicate" in front of people you just met. Obviously, he was just bare inches from total humiliation - what would be next? Her fixing his scarf? Checking his gloves for dryness? Telling him to blow his nose?

_God forbid I should have some soot on my nose...!_

"Mrs de Bourgh, maybe some tea?" Mrs Darcy intervened at that moment. "We have honey, sugar or xylitol."

Auntie Maura looked slightly surprised at that. Why would Mrs Darcy make her stare so, Andrew had no idea, but he watched as she accepted a cup of tea - two spoons of honey - and blew at it to cool it slightly.

"This all produce from your estate, William?" she asked finally.

"Most of it," Mr Darcy confirmed. "Well, honey is from our neighbours, since we don't keep bees anywhere near the house. The cider is from our apples and we have unprocessed juice in the bags... Well, we don't grow tea, obviously. Other than that, mostly everything is home grown. Maybe apart from cane sugar Elizabeth used."

"And chocolate. Whatever we try, no cocoa wants to grow in Derbyshire," Mrs Darcy added mournfully. Her lips were twitching in a small smile, even though she sounded perfectly serious.

He saw Auntie's eyes narrowing as she watched Mrs Darcy, focusing on the baby carrier slung across her front

"And _this_ would be?"

The baby apparently felt the attention and made an unhappy sound.

"Give him to me," Mr Darcy took off his heavy coat, reached out and unwound the little one from the sling. "Come here, Alex. You can sleep on Dad now. See? Dad is just as warm as Mommy. Rose, help me with the wrap, please."

In a few seconds, after some twisting and turning, Mr Darcy had the baby - Alex - strapped to his chest, leaving barely anything of the boy visible.

"This is Alexander Evan Darcy," he explained as Rose tied the knot on the wrap under the little bottom and helped her father to shrug on his coat, mostly covering the wrap and the package inside it.

"And he was born in...?"

"September. Stop fishing, Maura."

Auntie smiled, just with one corner of her mouth.

"I wish Catherine could have seen this. It would do my heart a lot of good to hear her spluttering at how your family has weathered that mess."

"It's been a few challenging months," Mrs Darcy said, somewhat darkly. "But we managed. At least once we were done, we were done. You, however, must be, well... just introducing yourselves must be a bit of a challenge, I suppose?"

"It became a temporary hassle, indeed," Auntie sniffed again. "But we, too, have _managed_. We've never really socialised with Catherine, not outside the absolutely required family functions, so there was no obligation to follow up on that in any way. It's enough that our family name was dragged through mud..."

"Ah," Mrs Darcy grimaced. "Yeah. Sorry."

"The only person who should be sorry is Catherine, Mrs Darcy. Or, well, my late cousin Luis, too. I can say, with perfect conviction, that he was, in fact, a moron. Marrying Catherine was one of the stupidest things he had ever done."

"He was smart when he wanted to," Mr Darcy sighed and there was _history_ there. "Anyway. Well, the court case is done, Aunt Catherine will spend some time in isolation, Anne is hopefully getting help and we can live peacefully. Unless, of course, you wish to raise some points...?"

Auntie Maura frowned.

"What do you... Seriously, William, what?"

"Aunt Catherine implied, several times, that you would be more than willing to intervene on her behalf, should there be a question of custody of the twins," Miss Georgiana said slowly, speaking up for the first time. "I hope she was deluded or simply lying, but you must understand what it looked like from our perspective. Especially since the custody of both of them is a bit complex..."

Auntie actually paled. And nearly dropped her cup.

"She... she _what_?"

In a flash, Teddy was there with a chair - where _did_ he get the chair? - helping Auntie to sit down as she looked at Miss Georgiana with wide eyes.

"She threatened to take it to the Family Court and try to have the twins removed from our care," Mr Darcy explained, watching her carefully. "She said, repeatedly, that you'd be a great help to her in that particular endeavour."

"William, for God's sake, did you believe her? I know that you hadn't seen me since you were at the university, but why would... I would never..."

_Shit._

"Well, another thing that woman managed to twist to her needs," Mrs Darcy commented, rubbing her nose. "I mean — seriously, she was so convinced...!"

"She could have been convinced, but that isn't enough for the court, be it me or someone else sitting there. Why would anyone...! Oh dear. I will have to tell Vivian. Andre, remind me when we get home, I need to talk to your mother about this. Just in case Catherine decides to write someone from that place she is now stuck at."

"Sure," he nodded, watching Rose and Mina in fascination. "I mean... She wanted to sue for your custody? And then what?"

Rose shrugged.

"She would have made me grow my hair out and shouted if it didn't grow quickly enough, I suppose. She probably didn't really think much farther ahead."

"She would have had us shipped to some boarding school," Mina added. "She had been mumbling about it for, like, weeks."

Teddy pulled her closer to him in a gesture that was, in that context, rather understandable.

"Maura, if I could suggest, if you have no plans for the afternoon, maybe you and Andrew could come to Pemberley with us? Elizabeth was planning to go home anyway, as soon as Lucy comes to take her place, so we could take the girls - and Teddy, yes, I promised, Mina - and have dinner together."

"Well, Vivian will not be expecting us until late evening," Auntie Maura frowned at her mobile. "Let me call for our driver and we can be away in minutes."

"Of course. Our car is parked by the sellers' entrance, since it serves as a delivery van. I will fetch it and meet you at the entrance to customers' parking lot."

They milled around for a few more minutes, customers coming and going, Auntie Maura slowly recovering from the little shock and Mina and Teddy making sweet eyes at each other. Rose was helping with the sales, occasionally making faces at something her sister said.

"More tea?" Mrs Darcy suggested. "It wouldn't do for you to get chilled before we can leave."

"T-thank you," he stammered, raising his cup. "But, without..."

"I know. Without sugar. Don't worry, I'm not going to press it onto anyone, and Teddy avoids sweets, too, so we have some experience... Anyway. Your tea. Andrew? Andy?"

"André, if needed," he offered. "Thank you, Mrs Darcy."

"Call me Elizabeth," she smiled and nodded. "Oh, here they are. Girls! Get ready, we're leaving!"

Two new women - and a man - took their places behind the counter, freeing Mrs and Mr Darcy. One of the women reached up and pulled Miss Darcy into a long kiss, making Andrew turn away in embarrassment.

"Get a room!" Rose groused as she pulled her gloves on. "Seriously, though. You've been married for almost half a year, should this have worn off by now?"

"Shut up, my dear niece," Miss Darcy - well, not _Miss_ \- shot over the counter. "You may not know it yet, but one day you will be in a similar situation and you will suffer the pains of our retribution."

_Translate: Rose has no boyfriend (or girlfriend) right now. Noted._

That afternoon at the Darcys was suddenly shaping up to be a rather good idea and he hoped Auntie Maura would accept the invitation.

Maybe that whole Christmas fair thing wasn't such a bad idea after all. Actually, maybe he had found something interesting for himself at the Lambton County Fair.

Rose smiled at him as she raised the section of the counter that allowed them to leave the now crowded interior.

Correction.

He had _definitely_ found some _one_ interesting at the Lambton County Fair.


End file.
